A TAUNTON great grandmother is celebrating the festive season with the same tree that has gone up in her home every year of her life.

Wilma Gravenor's mother bought the tree for her baby's first Christmas way back in 1937.

And it has unpacked it each December ever since.

The fairy and a couple of baubles are all that remained of the original decorations as Wilma, now 82, and her granddaughter Caitlin Gravenor-Howells adorned the 18-inch tree for this Christmas.

"The tree's of great importance to me because it's so full of memories," said Wilma.

"When I was six-months-old and we were living in Barry (South Wales), mum bought me the tree.

"She used to hold me beside it and tap the glass baubles. Apparently it would make me giggle.

"She brought it out each Christmas and put it on the sideboard for me.

"Each year I'd take more and more notice of it.

"During the war there were no decorations around. My auntie would give me the colourful pages from Woman's Own and mum would sit me down with a pair of scissors, a pot of flour and water paste to make paper chains."

Wilma no longer keeps the tree in its original box as it is now quite fragile.

"It's lost some of the decorations over the years so we've added some others," she said.

"If somebody loses an earring, we put the other one on the tree.

"If there are any plastic bells or trinkets they get rescued from the wrapping paper and we'll hang them on the next year."

Wilma particularly enjoys seeing the fairy.

She said: "It's made of celluloid, which couldn't be used now as it's highly flammable. It's the same age as me - we're both 82 and smile at each other."

Caitlin said the tree is a vital part of her family history.

She added: "I have grown up on stories from my grandmother about this tree. It something that has been going on my entire life. It is part of the family history."